N.Y. Agriculture & Markets Law § 173-c: Cooperative honey bee health improvement program

§ 173-c. Cooperative honey bee health improvement program. 1. In

support of the duties outlined in this article, as well as the goals and

objectives for pollinator protection; the commissioner shall create a

cooperative honey bee health improvement program which will require

that:

(a) All beekeepers shall provide to the commissioner the number of

managed colonies; the county in which each of these colonies is located;

and current contact information of the individual or individuals

responsible for the care of these bees. All beekeepers shall also

indicate whether they intend to sell nucleus colonies. This information

shall be updated and provided to the commissioner on an annual basis.

(b) The department shall use this information to communicate the

incidence of infectious diseases and parasites at the county level to

beekeepers and bee clubs and to notify beekeepers of the potential need

for the department to prohibit the movement or selling of diseased or

infested bees or require the destruction of such bees. The department

shall also use this information to establish the boundaries of disease

and parasite infestations in the area surrounding a confirmed disease or

parasite infestation.

(c) Any individual or business that intends to sell nucs or queens

produced within and offered for sale to other persons in New York must

first have an inspection of its apiaries, as authorized by section one

hundred seventy-three-b of this article, by the department which

inspections shall continue on an annual basis, so long as nucs or queens

are offered for sale. These inspections shall ascertain whether such

beekeeper's apiaries are free from American Foulbrood and whether levels

of other infectious diseases and parasites in the operation render the

nucs or queens unfit for sale. Any individual or business whose nucs or

queen rearing colonies are found to be infested with American Foulbrood,

after laboratory confirmation, shall be prohibited from selling nucs and

queens until the affected apiaries are reinspected and found to be free

from American Foulbrood. If upon re-inspection, symptoms of American

Foulbrood are found to persist, the prohibition from selling nucs and

queens shall continue, and the department shall take samples for

laboratory testing for the continued presence of American Foulbrood.

Should the laboratory test results show the samples free from American

Foulbrood, the department shall promptly notify the individual or

business of the test results and the termination of the prohibition of

the sale of nucs and queens.

(d) No person shall knowingly transport, move, buy, sell, possess,

barter, offer for sale or barter, deliver, or offer for transportation

any species or subspecies of bees which have been determined by the

commissioner to cause injury, directly or indirectly, to the public

health or welfare or to this state's managed bee population, crops, or

other plants; provided, however, that the commissioner may, at his or

her discretion, exempt the transportation, sale, possession, movement,

or delivery of such bees used for scientific or educational purposes

under such safeguards as deemed necessary by the commissioner.

(e) Every shipment of live bees in cages or packages without comb into

this state from another state or foreign country, shall be accompanied

by a permit issued by the commissioner, or by a certificate of freedom

from disease executed by an official of such state or foreign country

recognized by the commissioner.

(f) Every shipment of a colony of bees, used brood comb, used

beekeeping equipment, or live bees on comb into this state from another

state or foreign country, shall be accompanied by a permit issued by the

commissioner or by a certificate of freedom from diseases and parasitic

organisms adversely affecting bees and from species or subspecies of

bees which have been determined by the commissioner to cause injury

directly or indirectly, to the public safety or to the state's managed

bee population, crops, or other plants; and certifying that a proper

inspection was made not earlier than sixty days preceding the date of

shipment. Such certificate shall be executed by the certifying official

of such state or foreign country. A duplicate of such certificate must

be received by the department before any such shipment enters the state.

Every transportation company that knowingly receives such shipment shall

immediately notify the commissioner thereof, giving the name and address

of the consignor or consignee.

2. The goals of the cooperative honey bee health improvement program

shall be to:

(a) document the health of the state's managed pollinator population,

including the presence of parasites, diseases, and environmental threats

to the state's population of managed pollinators;

(b) provide information on honey bee health to beekeepers,

stakeholders and academia to inform research and best management

practices related to pollinator health;

(c) document the annual population of managed pollinators in each

county within New York state; and

(d) collect contact information for each beekeeper to allow for better

communication among the department and beekeepers relating to the

incidence of parasites, disease and other health threats that could be

transmitted within the flight range of managed pollinators.

3. There shall be no fee or other registration cost for participation

in the cooperative honey bee health improvement program.

4. A beekeeper required to submit information to the commissioner

pursuant to this section may request that such information be exempted

from disclosure pursuant to subdivision five of section eighty-nine of

the public officers law.